twitcher meaning: definition, etymology and quotations

twitcher

nounalso spelled Twitcher

AU, UK /ˈtwɪt͡ʃə/ · CA, US /ˈtwɪt͡ʃɚ/

Etymology From twitch + -er. The birdwatching sense first recorded in 1970 and recalled as being in use in 1968; claimed by R.E. Emmett to have arisen in 1950s Britain in reference to birder Howard Medhurst who often arrived at rare‑bird sites shivering after riding pillion on Emmett's motorcycle.

Someone or something that twitches.

An avid birdwatcher who travels long distances to see rare species, or to add a new species to their personal list; a birder who goes on twitches.

It is difficult to classify them precisely, but, in roughly ascending order of productivity, we now recognise the purely chance observer, the locality regulars (now recognising that ‘time in’ eventually equals ‘rarity out’), the ringers (particularly when working in groups), the occasional tally-hunter (most of us, if we are honest), the full-time observatory workers (exhibiting the highest standards of discipline) and the growing group of full-blooded rarity collectors (self-styled ‘twitchers’, covering individually up to 30,000 miles in their annual pursuit of ‘lifers’).1970, D.I.M. Wallace, “The first ten years of the Rarities Committee”, in British Birds, volume 63, number 3, London, page 124:
Twitchers are very mobile and may travel great distances to see rare birds, of which they hear through their efficient 'grapevine'.1981, Peter Weaver, The Birdwatcher's Dictionary, London: T & AD Poyser, page 120:

1 more example

I do not consider myself either a twitcher or an expert.2000, Bill Oddie, Gripping Yarns, page 21:

Derived terms: curtain twitcher

Twitcher

noun

Etymology From Twitch + -er.

A streamer on the video livestream service Twitch.

The Twitchers interact with their audiences in multiple ways in order to create communities.2022, Natalia Quintas-Froufe, Ana González-Neira, “First Studies of the Migration of Television Content to Twitch in Spain”, in Álvaro Rocha, Daniel Barredo, Paulo Carlos López-López, Iván Puentes-Rivera, editors, Communication and Smart Technologies: Proceedings of ICOMTA 2021 (Smart Innovation, Systems and Technologies; 259), Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd., →ISBN, page 371:
Some messages warn against not being fooled, and that YouTubers or Twitchers should be somewhat absolved because “it’s their job” (C2), with the “dirty rotten system” (C2) to blame in which “EA decides who get what” (C2). […] Players post messages stressing the differences between themselves and streamers, with “regular folks are forced to earn … wins in fut champs” (C1; C3) while YouTubers or Twitchers “get given wins by their viewers” (C1; C3).2022, Piotr Siuda, Mark R. Johnson, “Microtransaction Politics in FIFA Ultimate Team: Game Fans, Twitch Streamers, and Electronic Arts”, in Raiford Guins, Henry Lowood, Carlin Wing, editors, EA Sports FIFA: Feeling the Game, Bloomsbury Academic, →ISBN, part 2 (Midfield), pages 99 and 102:

1 more example

Popular Twitchers (live streamers) build and cultivate devoted communities of fans where hundreds and even thousands log on to watch their broadcasts of whatever it is they want to share with the world.2023, Adam Collins, Jason Harlacher, Effective Bullying Prevention: A Comprehensive Schoolwide Approach, The Guilford Press, →ISBN, page 203:

Entry derived from the Wiktionary, under licence CC BY-SA 4.0 — authors: page histories for twitcher and Twitcher.